‘So Desperate’

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/9374821/site/newsweek/

While New Orleans has grabbed much of the post-Hurricane Katrina spotlight, many rural and poor Gulf Coast communities are still waiting for help.



The Red Cross’s extraordinary response to Katrina has reached hundreds of thousands of people, including providing financial assistance to 236,000 victims and serving 9.2 million hot meals, as of Friday. But aid to some of the less obvious areas of need has been so lacking that Boston-based Oxfam America, citing massive institutional failure, has gone into Mississippi and Louisiana to administer aid directly inside the United States for the first time in its history.

“In some of the more rural areas, our presence is not as strong as we would like it,” says Armond T. Mascelli, vice president of response operations for the Red Cross in Washington. “We’re trying [to branch out into other areas]. It’s an issue of knowing where they are, and being able to get the resources there.”

Unfortunately, it does seem that MS hasn't received too much attention. The MS coastline once had beautiful homes overlooking the Gulf. One cemetary in Gulfport was so pretty that I couldn't resist taking a photo. I have driven through Gulfport and Biloxi and all the little towns between different times. Each time, we were in awe of how pretty it was. The views from the highway are awesome! It is so sad to see nothing but piles of debris there now.

And the people of MS? Everyone we have ever encountered has been very nice and helpful. If I could figure out a way to get the kids taken care of, I would be on my way down there yesterday.

JMHO

The company I work for has a plant in Shreveport, so we're still in the process of collecting supplies to send to our plant to be distributed, since Shreveport is hosting 3 different shelters there.

But we're not sending the truck down until the end of this month, which I think is a little late.

Pook said:

But we're not sending the truck down until the end of this month, which I think is a little late.

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I don't think it is late at all.

The General consensus for emergency relief is to get people 'up on their feet again' - but some of these victims were never on their feet to begin with, they depend on the system to look after them, they always have and probably always will. Proverty is hard to escape and when you had so little to begin with and now have lost it all?

IMO there is still going to be a great need for assistance/donations for a long time to come.

It is great what your community is doing to help.

tennessee said:

Unfortunately, it does seem that MS hasn't received too much attention. The MS coastline once had beautiful homes overlooking the Gulf. One cemetary in Gulfport was so pretty that I couldn't resist taking a photo. I have driven through Gulfport and Biloxi and all the little towns between different times. Each time, we were in awe of how pretty it was. The views from the highway are awesome! It is so sad to see nothing but piles of debris there now.

And the people of MS? Everyone we have ever encountered has been very nice and helpful. If I could figure out a way to get the kids taken care of, I would be on my way down there yesterday.

JMHO

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Yes...I agree. It is a lovely area with beautiful historical homes. I am sad there is not enough help to go around. I can't imagine what it must feel like to lose your home, much less a family home that has been in your family for over a 100 years. I am a big fan of historical homes. All this history scattered in huge piles everywhere makes me very sad. IMO